In emergency situations, police, firefighters, and other first responders may need to forcibly enter a building or dwelling to gain access in order to save lives. One common method of forcible entry involves forcibly opening a locked door. To master the skill of forcible door entry, one should have a basic knowledge of the types and doors and security devices that may be encountered, as well as knowledge training in the types of tools that may be used for forcible door entry.
Emergency Services typically rely on a number of different devices to force entry to a building or vehicle. Prying tools, such as “Halligan” tools and crowbars are common tools used to breach doors and windows. A Halligan is a special tool commonly used by firefighters for prying, twisting, punching, or striking. FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a conventional “Halligan” tool that is commonly used by firefighters for forcible door entry. The tool 10 includes a claw (or fork) 11, a blade (wedge) 12 (what is commonly referred to as an ADZ end), and a tapered spike 13, which is especially useful in quickly forcing open many types of locked doors. Either the ADZ end or fork end of the tool can be used to break through the latch of a swinging door by forcing the tool between the door and door jamb and prying the two apart, striking it with a fiat-head axe, for example.
To know how to correctly and efficiently open a locked door in an emergency using a Halligan tool, a person should be trained in the use of the Halligan tool, and then perfect the knowledge by practice. For instance, knowledge of the type of door and its components is important to allow proper placement and use of a forcible entry tool such as a Halligan tool. By way of example, the direction of the door opening (inward or outward opening) and the type and material composition of the door frame (wood, metal) are important factors that dictate the manner in which forcible entry of a locked door should be conducted.